


Home Is Where The Heart Is

by Paula K (Homiless)



Category: Star Trek (2009)
Genre: Established Relationship, Family, Fluff, Kid Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-11-09
Updated: 2011-11-09
Packaged: 2017-10-25 21:03:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/274764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Homiless/pseuds/Paula%20K
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bones takes Jim home to Georgia before leaving on their first 5-year mission.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Home Is Where The Heart Is

“Come on, Daddy. I wanna go on the Merry-Go-Round again. This time, you should ride with Uncle Jim, though – he looks sad,” Joanna said, pointing to Jim, who was sitting on a bench waiting for Bones to bring his daughter back from the bathroom.

“He’s not sad, Jo-Jo. He’s just…thinking,” Len said, hugging his daughter to him. What Jim really was was hung-over, Bones thought, smirking a little. He’d warned the kid about the shots of home-made whiskey he’d insisted on drinking. Bones had had a private stash hidden in his childhood bedroom and of course Jim sniffed it out. Seven shots later had Jim laying out on the floor and Bones, being the best friend, having the duty of putting Jim’s very heavy and *very* sorry ass into bed.

Not that the drinking wasn’t warranted. Jim had never been to Georgia before. He hadn’t been around family much, either. First time in the south and first time being surrounded by family – drinks were definitely a necessity. Len’s mother took to Jim within the first ten seconds of meeting him. Cupped his pretty pale face and planted kisses on both cheeks, calling him darlin’ this and sweetheart that. Mostly, Len just rolled his eyes, but on the inside he was smiling. This visit home before they took off for their five year mission would be just what the doctor ordered and Jim was suddenly deep into the throes of being looked after by every female member of Leonard’s family. Including Joanna, whom it was decided could visit her father since he’d inadvertently gone and saved the world.

Joanna had arrived late last night for a three day long reunion visit with her father. They’d fed Jim greens and fried chicken before putting Jo to bed and staying up late talking out on the roof of the old farmhouse – each taking shots of whiskey and sharing old memories. Leonard figured it must’ve been close to 7am when Joanna bounded into the bedroom to wake up “Uncle Jim” by announcing that they were going to go to zoo – and wouldn’t that just be the most fun ever? Obligingly, Jim nodded, smiling even though he was sure he was not quite alive.

Two hours later and he was up and showered, dressed and ‘raring’ to go by Jim’s standards, anyway. Taking pity on his friend, Len had given Jim a hangover remedy in a hypo, though it had barely started working before Joanna wanted to go on the Merry-Go-Round. Len had tried to dissuade his daughter, offering to take her on it himself, but she seemed to have it in her head that whatever she and her Daddy did, Jim had to do, too.

“Alright, sweetheart. I’ll ride with Uncle Jim and we’ll let you ride the pony, okay?” he told her, holding her hand as she led them to where Jim sat.

“Uncle Jim! Uncle Jim! We’re gonna go again, but this time Daddy’s gonna sit with you in the coach so you don’t get lonely,” she told him, climbing into his lap so Jim could hold her.

“Thanks, Jo. I was a little lonely,” Jim told her, hugging her gently, looking at Len over her chestnut curls. Jim’s face was pale but there was a look in those incredible blue eyes that Len mirrored back to him. Seemed Jim had fallen in love with his 7 year old and Len was more than happy to share that with him. In fact, the warmth that bloomed inside his chest at that thought made him smile so much it nearly hurt.

“Let’s wait a while, darlin’. We’ll get our pictures made in the booth first, yeah? I think Uncle Jim would like a memory with you that you can both share. What do you think? You wanna have him in a picture with us?” He asked Jo, stroking her hair as she sat on Jim’s lap.

“Yuh-huh. I wanna, Daddy. That way I can have you both with me while you’re way up in the stars. Uncle Jim won’t be so lonely, either, if he’s got our picture. Will you Uncle Jim?” Joanna asked, her eyes wide with the question, patting Jim’s back for comfort.

Jim pushed the dark hair away from Jo’s face and smiled. “I’d like that very much, Jo. You’re smart just like your daddy – always knowing exactly what to do to help people. You think you’ll grow up to be a great doctor like him?” He asked, standing up, putting Jo on his hip as they walked toward the old-fashioned looking digital photo booth.

“I think I wanna be a Starship Captain like you,” she said seriously, resting her head on Jim’s shoulder. Grinning, Jim nodded and squeezed Jo a little tighter, trying not to laugh at Bones’ dour expression. Clearly, he hated the idea, but there was no way he’d discourage his little girl from doing anything she wanted to do.

Jim set Jo down and let her and Bones go into the booth by themselves. Jo, however, didn’t like that idea at all. She climbed down from her daddy’s lap and pulled Jim in beside them by the hand.

“Needs to be all of us. Family picture,” she said, as if he was a moron for not understanding this from the very first mention of getting the snapshots taken in the first place. Bones didn’t seem to disagree, throwing an arm around Jim’s shoulder and tugging him in close. Jo climbed up to sit in the middle, one of each of their knees balancing her so she could sit between them.

Ten snapshots later, Bones divided them up, giving half to Jo and half to Jim. After that, they decided that breakfast was a good idea, as Len was sure Jim might start fading before noon without the proper intake of caffeine. They stayed at the big mall until after lunch, deciding that a dip in the pond back home sounded like a great way to spend the rest of the afternoon.

Later, after another delicious supper of cornbread, deep-fried catfish and coleslaw, Jim was nursing a beer. Unbeknownst to Bones, Jim had inched his head slowly but surely onto his shoulder to rest. Georgia, it seemed to Jim, was the perfect place to just go and relax. For Jim, this meant getting more and more comfortable with the fact that he wasn’t just falling in love with Bones’ daughter. He’d never talked to Len about his feelings. Too hard. Too scary. Definitely too grown-up for a guy like him. Still, the feelings were there and they never seemed to go anywhere. Just.. seemed to keep growing deeper and deeper. Somewhere inside, Jim thought Bones might feel the same. The way his best friend looked at him from time to time gave him suspicions.

An arm came around Jim’s shoulder and he fit even more snuggly against Bones, closing his eyes as they sat out on the front porch and listened to the light rain fall like the night.

“Officially, I think that was our first date,” Jim stated, holding his breath, waiting for Bones’ reaction.

“Our first date here in Georgia, maybe,” Bones corrected, and Jim swore he could feel the smug smile on the older man’s face.

“Here?” Jim queried, the curiosity dripping from his lips.

“Well, you all but invited me to sit beside you on that shuttle nearly three years ago. I shared my booze with you and my sad story of divorce. You commiserated with me and then later let me puke all over your smelly, bloody, very old jeans. Then I let you move into my *single* apartment as a half apology/half thank you and well… I’d say we’ve been courting one another on and off ever since. Just… was waiting for you to figure it out, I guess.”

The gentle matter-of-factness in Bones’ voice had Jim turning, staring into those irritatingly calm hazel orbs.

“We were like… dating and you didn’t even tell me? That’s some way to treat your intended,” Jim replied, narrowing his gaze on Bones’ bottom lip. The smirk that followed Jim’s revelation was enough to make him go on talking. “I wouldn’t have needed to go after all that sex if I knew I could be getting it regular at home, you know. In spite of what you think, I *am* capable of being with only one person.” Bones all but laughed at that, working hard at keeping his face straight while Jim struggled. “Alright… maybe not, but… And… speaking of that, like… it… doesn’t bother you that I did that?” Jim asked, feeling suddenly very much like an asshole. Len reached up a hand and stroked Jim’s cheek, leaning in so their foreheads rested against one another.

“Way I figure it, why not go and let you get all that out of your system. Not like once we’re up there,” he motioned to the stars, “you’ll be able to have your cake and eat it, too. Besides, you were 23. I’d be crazy to make you settle down with me at that age. I’d never have been enough for you, Jim. I’m not stupid. I know how it is and I’m not even saying I’m staking my claim now, even though I’d like to. You’re young. And… I’ll be around when you’re ready. Just… maybe now that you know how I feel, could you stop sharing so much?” Len asked seriously, pulling back a bit to study Jim’s face. He stroked the rough-soft cheek again, easing away the lines of distress with his long, elegant fingers.

“You’re enough, Bones. You always have been. I just never wanted to talk about it because our friendship’s meant too much to me. Everything’s been so desperate since we’ve gotten back. Memorials. Debriefs. All of it has just sort of… put things in perspective for me. Now or never – and… I want to have a ‘now’ with you, but didn’t know how to tell you. I knew you were feeling bad about everything happening the way it did between me and Spock. I didn’t want to confuse things more than they already were. Thought I’d get the chance to at least mention it while we were down here, but you had it all figured out and never even told me. Guess you were right all along. I am an idiot. Here we’ve been practically dating for three years and I never even knew.”

Jim’s eyes were wider now, and in realizing this new information, he was feeling bold. Bold enough to turn and straddle Bones’ lap, even, and he didn’t stop there. Cupping Bones’ face between his palms, he leaned forward and brushed his lips against Bones’ for the first time. It wasn’t fireworks. Or butterflies in his stomach. It was something much better than those things, for those things were but a flash in the pan. This… this was a whole nother animal.

Bones’ arms came around his back, allowing Jim to sink further against his warm, strong body and Jim just… kissed him for all he was worth for no other reason than he finally could. Kissing Bones was truly like coming home. Sure, they were in Bones’ childhood home, but for all Jim cared, they could be on Mars. Or Andoria. Or Delta Vega, for that matter, because right now and for the rest of his life, kissing Bones would mean he was home – no matter where he was.


End file.
